The ‘Timebomb’ Goes Off

According to Tiffany ‘Timebomb’ Vansoest, her transitioning to MMA now would be like eating desesrt before dinner. I spoke to the WBC Champion as she prepares for her March 15 bout in Lions Fight Promotions (LFP) 9. In our interview Vansoest talked about being a true fighter, money vs love for combat sports, Ramon Dekkers, and the success of WMMA.

Vansoest explains she was absolute shock when the passing of Ramon Dekkers came across her Twitter feed. “Being a Dutch fighter I look to other muay thai Dutch fighters as inspiration and role models… and it to find out one of my favorite fighters suddenly passed away was heart-wrenching.”

“For me I remember his shear power and ability to break peoples will, to go into Thailand in an amazing fashion…there is no other fighter like him…he will be missed,” she continued.

The 24 California native has strapped them on with best including Ronda Rousey and Liz Carmouche. “To see them get it on and make history is great, and I am excited to see what the future holds women in the sport,” says Vansoest of the two ladies who recently made history as the first female fighters in the UFC. It wasn’t hard though to choose which fighter she was rooting for as Carmouche was her sparring partner. But she does appreciate feeling the Olympic Judo power of Rousey stating that experience was unbelievable.
As a result of ‘Timebomb’s MMA connections there has been a lot of media pressure for her to join the sport, but she doesn’t let it affect what she is doing. “I am really concentrating and focused developing and further building my skills as a striker… As a muay thai fighter I have a lot of opportunities presented to me…I won’t stop my progression to start somewhere else at the bottom,” explains Tiffany.
All of the media hasn’t let it change her lifestyle though, even with a sushi roll named after her. After creating a roll with her own ingredients Vansoest returned to restaurant with it on the menu and named as she suggested also ‘The Timebomb’.

Muay Thai fighters transitioning to MMA is a trend that Vansoest notices, and believes that some are doing it for the money and not the love of the sport as purist. However, she also admits that MMA is paving the way for striking competitors to expand its audience referencing the 40 million viewers LFP attracts now on AXS TV.
On March 15 Vansoest will face a sizeable Natalie Yip, who she understands to have a heart of champion be relentless. None of those factors deter the undefeated Champ though, who exclaimed she is willing to fight anyone boasting, “Put someone in front of me and I’ll fight ‘em!”